On 18 February, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba during a meeting in Munich that Beijing does not sell lethal weapons to parties of conflicts, which implied Russia. He also reiterated his support for “peace” and negotiations between Ukraine and Russia, according to China’s Foreign Ministry.
Back in early 2023, the Chinese Foreign Ministry published a “peace” proposal to resolve Russia’s war against Ukraine, comprising general phrases and calls for negotiations. Ukraine criticized the plan. In the spring of 2023, the Chinese envoy, a Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs, Li Hui, toured European capitals to promote China’s peace plan for Ukraine, calling for an immediate ceasefire, which would leave Russia in possession of the occupied territories of Ukraine.
Now, Wang Yi stressed China’s “principled position” on the “Ukraine issue,” emphasizing that China is committed to a political solution to hot spot issues, “advocating for peace” and refraining from selling lethal weapons to conflict regions or parties.
According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Kuleba expressed Ukraine’s willingness to maintain friendly exchanges with China and further develop their relationship, and said that Ukraine highly appreciates China’s stance on resolving the Ukrainian crisis through political means. Ukraine hopes that China will continue to play a unique and constructive role in promoting peace, China’s Foreign Ministry says.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry cited Ukrainian FM Kuleba as saying,
“I met with my Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to discuss bilateral relations, trade, and the need for a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine. I informed Foreign Minister Wang Yi about Ukraine’s vision of the upcoming Global Peace Summit in Switzerland. We agreed on the need to maintain Ukrainian-Chinese contacts at all levels and to continue our dialog.”
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